4-28-21: The Spring weather is perfect in the mid to upper 70’s and perfect for some top down exploring so I decided to head up to Crater Lake for the day. Only about 2 hours from Medford, OR I wanted to explore HWY 234/HWY 62 from Gold Hill as it runs along the Rogue river and is very scenic.
A quick stop just outside of Gold Hill to visit Ti’lomikh Falls A nice roadside stop with some interesting history.
This little fella was enjoying the sunshine too.
A bit further up the road I was pleasantly surprised by the “Rogue River Gorge” an area where the Rogue carves through the basalt lava tubes. A very easy hike pays off with some dramatic river action. Expect to see some video on the TSOZ page soon!
The next pleasant surprise was Sams Valley, wow, what a great area! Have to come back and explore this area in the future. Pushing on into the higher elevations, the nearly empty road just continued to get better and better. Eventually snow started to make an appearance too.
Crater Lake National Park‘s website had indicated that the North entrance and Rim drive were closed due to winter snow still being present, I was hopeful that I would be able to at least catch a glimpse of the lake and have my picnic lunch. The temps were now in the mid 50’s and I considered putting the top up, but pressed on despite the hardship 🙂
Stopping at the entrance booth the Ranger advised that I could park at the Rim cafe parking lot and walk a short distance to see the lake. Upon arrival I was greeted with a half empty parking lot (one of the joys of a mid-weekday visit!) and then this…
WOW, just WOW. No breeze and the lake was like a mirror. What an amazing sight! I’ll definitely return when the roads are open.
Hey Its Gregg! 